Presque Isle Downs aiming for greater success on, off track

Monday

After enjoying nearly four months of rest on their Florida farm, Wayne Rice's stable of horses arrived at Presque Isle Downs ready to race at full speed at the start of the 11th season at the Summit Township track. The plan hasn't wavered much in past years.

But the plan will change, for Rice's horses and nearly 800 others expected to compete starting with Monday's first eight-race schedule of the season through the final night of races Oct. 4.

The track opens racing a week earlier than usual as part of what Matthew Ennis, Presque Isle Downs & Casino's director of finance and director of racing, called "an opportunity (for horses and trainers) to settle in" and a chance for track officials to "increase potentially our field sizes (for races) and create a better product for the wagering community."

Opening night begins a five-week period of racing four nights per week, Mondays through Thursdays. The track had traditionally offered five nights of racing a week throughout past seasons.

The shorter weekly schedule to start the season, racing secretary Allan Plever said, paves the way to raise the number of horses per race — and number of horses to bet on at the track and at off-track sites in the United States and other countries — from 7.35 in 2017 (5,885 horses that started 800 races) to at least eight while still maintaining a focus on horse safety.

Monday's event features a full 12-horse field. With the expanded field, trainers still can provide their horses with the standard 10 to 14 days or longer to recuperate because there are five fewer days of racing in the first five weeks of the season. The track returns to racing five nights a week, Sundays through Thursdays, on June 17.

"We're very concerned for our horse safety," said Ennis, who pointed to six fatal injuries in 5,885 starts in 2017, or 1.02 per 1,000 starts. He said that ranks below the national average of 1.10 per 1,000 starts for tracks with synthetic surfaces, according to Equine Injury Database's findings from more than 100 tracks in the United States and Canada.

Meanwhile, Ennis is excited about the possibilities that lie ahead for wagering, which averaged $714,632 in total bets per night in 2017.

He declined to estimate the projected financial impact of an expanded field because an analysis will be conducted during the season.

"If we can average one additional horse per race, it means a lot in terms of betting dollars," Plever said. "So we're trying to maximize the number of horses in each race, and in turn generate betting dollars."

Plever said more than 500 horses already have arrived at Presque Isle Downs. He estimates 750 to 770 horses will spend this season at the track, including in a new 48-stall barn completed earlier this spring that raises the number of stalls on site to 851.

Plever said the track needs 70 to 80 horses fewer to fill out races for the four-night weekly schedule compared to the five-night weekly format. That gives trainers more time to prepare horses for the grind of a 100-day season.

Rice, who begins his 11th season of racing at Presque Isle Downs, said his horses "are fresh and rested right now so I can have a pretty strong 20 weeks" after the long winter break and a recent five-week program at Keeneland and Churchill Downs racetracks in Kentucky.

Still, Rice understands the benefits of a shorter schedule early in the season.

"It gives everybody slightly less necessity to try to run (horses) as early right now," he said. "It lets you remove a little of the stress and urgency. You get to be a little more patient with your athletes and let them come to the game a little more quietly and easily."

Track officials said they are focused on improving the overall quality of racing, on the track and at betting windows.

High-profile races like the Presque Isle Masters, a $400,000 race in September that's considered a stepping stone to success at prestigious national events like the Breeders' Cup, can attract more trainers and horses from across the country, which improves the level of competition.

Competitive races can lead to more sizable handles, or amount of money bet on races, especially from off-track betting.

Ennis said the export handle, or money wagered through off-track betting, comprises nearly 90 percent of the track's total wagering revenue. Off-track bettors wagered $688,573 per night in 2017, compared to $26,059 at the track. Attendance stood at 735 fans per night.

"I don't think we've really put a dollar number on what we would feel is a strong improvement," new Presque Isle Downs & Casino vice president and general manager Kevin O'Sullivan said. "But any (increase) in handle and (having) a good, safe running track with lots more racers coming in, we would look at that as being a great improvement."

"I have not raced at a place that has raced four days a week compared to five in quite some time," Rice said. "I was expecting five days a week. I'll have to see how four (days a week) does. I can let you know more in about five weeks."

Victor Fernandes can be reached at 870-1716 or by e-mail. Follow him on Twitter at Twitter.com/ETNfernandes.

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